Dancer Turned Marketing Major Makes Exit as Outstanding Grad

Date:December 15, 2012

Rebekah Bouch came to Palm Beach Atlantic University with dreams of becoming a dancer.

Instead, she’ll leave with a bachelor’s degree in marketing and the title of Outstanding Graduate of PBA’s Rinker School of Business. She will be recognized during fall commencement at 2 p.m. today at the Palm Beach County Convention Center.

Bouch, who is minoring in dance, said she was shocked when she learned that she had been chosen. “I never expected to be nominated for that,” said Bouch, who also was asked to offer graduate reflections during the ceremony.

During her time at PBA, Bouch has completed five internships and plans to work in advertising in the Orlando area after graduation. Three of her internships were at an advertising agency, and she also has interned at the Metro Orlando Economic Development Commission, one of the biggest economic development firms in the state of Florida.

Most recently she completed an internship in the homeowners assistance division of a West Palm Beach law firm.

In addition to earning at 3.9 G.P.A., Bouch has been active in Sigma Beta Delta, the business honor society, and she was chosen for the Col. Marty Trauger Scholarship. She also was active in the College Republicans and the PBA Dance Ensemble.

She said she was able to fit everything into her busy schedule by using her planning and time management skills. Also, she doesn’t procrastinate at all, she said.

“College is a big time for building relationships, but academics have to come first,” she said.

A graduate of The Master’s Academy in Oviedo, Bouch said she was considering attending Florida State University until she came to PBA on a campus visit with a friend.

“It was very intimate and I had an interview with Ms. Katie (Klein),” director of the dance department, she said. “I knew I’d get one-on-one attention here.”

However, she eventually felt called to pursue a different major. She and her parents prayed together for answers.

Looking back, she believes there was a purpose to it all. “I was almost as if God threw me into that crisis so that I would rely on Him,” she said.

Bouch, who has danced since age 4, remained active with the dance ensemble long after she changed her major to marketing. She said she hasn’t ruled out the idea of using her dance background to work in arts marketing someday.

“Dance speaks to people in a way that words cannot,” she said. Internationally “it’s a very powerful way to minister to people.”